Networked Blogs

Month: May 2015

It has been said, ” When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” Do we really know what that means? Do we understand that at the end of the Roman Empire the people did not pay attention to what their government was doing? While gladiator games and the like were the things kept the people occupied at the Coliseum, the government was robbing the treasury for their own selfish gain.

Fast forward a couple of thousand years later, and only the median has changed. The people don’t necessarily need to go to the Coliseum to see an event – although they are willing to part with their hard-earned money to do so. The majority of people can bring the tragedy of human drama into their homes such as “The Bachelor”, “Real Housewives of (fill in the city) “Preachers of (fill in the city)” or “Keeping up with the Kardashians”. The median for governments stealing have changed also. Instead of taking physical money out of the treasury, it now happens by movings ones and zeroes on a server. In both cases, the mindset of the Roman nation is alive and well: The people’s lust for pleasure and the government’s lust for power.

How can this be stopped? The first act of stopping this is to recognize that there is a problem in the first place. This is our biggest obstacle as a church and as a nation. We like to be sophisticated and call it “normalcy bias”. Call it what you will, however it is denial pure and simple. Some will attach a reasoning to it such as: “This can’t happen here, we’re Americans”. Others will take the “supernatural” route and say, “God will never let that happen here, we’re the most blessed nation on Earth”. Any of these reasons will allow you to keep you living a “normal” life and not give you the understanding of the gravity of the situation that you are in.

“What kind of situation am I living in?” you may ask. As I stated in my last entry “Life Imitating Art”, In addition to the 18 Trillion dollars of debt that our nation owes, we are seeing the lowest interest rates ever in nation’s history – at or near zero. Why is that so important? Two reasons: First anybody who saves money in a bank is not getting a return on the money that they save. The second reason is that if you have a mutual fund, 401k, or IRA those financial instruments are getting the same interest rate. So if you are retired, you may have to come out of retirement because your pension (if it is funded) or mutual fund will not bare enough interest for you to live on.

What most Americans – especially those in the Church don’t realize is that the system we live and work in functions and revolves around credit. As an example, when we purchase things on a credit card which uses other people’s money , we are essentially saying, “I will use your money and promise to pay you back later – with interest.” When we take this to the macro or national level we are saying the same thing, only with much bigger numbers. When the borrower who is subject to the lender, (See Proverbs 22:7) can not borrow any more money, the credit line has been seized up. The borrower panics because they have to find a new way to either make the payments to existing debt, or have to find a new way to get income become their original income is not enough to live on. THIS is what happened to our nation in 2008. Fast forward seven years later and the only thing that has changed is the debt has become bigger.

“What do I do now?” you may ask. First, realize that you have been lied to – that debt is not an asset, it is a liability. That the more debt you have accumulated, the bigger the liability you have. This is the goal of the system: Those that borrow hold all the liabilities, while those who lend wait patiently for you to max out your borrowing ability and at the appointed time, “negotiate” with you for all your other assets that you have not put up for collateral. Take Greece as an example. When the government overextended itself, the primary as well as opportunistic lenders (e.g. Russia and China) made loans available for Greece – at a price say, some islands that Russia can put a Naval base on?

Secondly, you must understand that anything you have that has no debt attached to it is an asset. As an example, not only the big-ticket items such as a house or a car, financial products such as a physical gold and silver – which are strongly encourage for you to get, are assets also. Even everyday products such as food, water, soap, and shampoo, are also assets. It is in this arena you would want to aquire as many assets as possible. As you would do your routine shopping, buy a few extra items for yourself and to barter. The added cost that you will incur now will pay dividends down the line due to the lack of resources that will be coming to a store near you.

Third, you will need a way to defend yourself as well as those items that can be taken away by owning a firearm. Some that are religious and object might say, “God will defend my home. I apply the Blood of Jesus everyday”. While this is true, keep in mind that God also gives human beings free will. You wouldn’t leave your doors unlocked would you – even if the Blood was applied? Of course not. If you use practical steps to secure your home, you should practical use steps to secure your person, A firearm is a very practical way to secure yourself, your family, and your property.

Fourth and most important, establish or re-establish a relationship with God. If you are intellectually honest, you would have to recognize that all things created on the Earth had to have a Creator that is greater than and outside of the creation. While you may argue that existence of God is not provable by “science” have you ever notice that when human beings get into trouble, not a single one of them has ever uttered, “Oh Science” to get them out of trouble? Eternity waits for every human being – “sinner” and “saint” alike. Which side will you be on?

When the Roman Empire fell, it burned. America, along with the rest of world will be no different.